knott



S. W. KNOTT.

LDING SEAT 359,790. Patented Mar. 22, 1887.

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet ,2.

S. W. KNOTT. FOLDING SEAT.

No. 359,790 Patented Mar. 22, 1887.

'V In l Q1 I UNITED STATES.

PATENT. FFICE.

sAMU-nnw. KNOT'I, on ST. Louis, MISSOURI, ASSIGNORY or ONEHALF 'ro LnwIs A. BROWN, OF SAME PLACE.

FOLDING'SEAT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of l ettera Patent No. 359,790, dated March 22, 1887. Application filed June '1. uses. Serial No. 204,366. (No model.)

To till whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, SAMUEL W. Know, of the city of St. Louis, in the State of Missouri, have invented a certain new and useful 1111- provement in Folding Seats, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being bad to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification,-

of the seat to the top rail of the frame. Fig.

7 is an end view of the seat open for use. Fig. 20 8 is an end view of the seat when folded. Fig. 8* is a cross-sectional view of the folded frame. Fig. 9 is an end view showing a modification of the end arms of the seat. Fig. 10 is an enlarged detail view illustrating one of the catches, being a section taken on line 10 10, Fig. 7. Fig. 11 is an enlarged perspective view illustrating the manner of securing the horizontal strips of the frame to the back legs. Fig. 12 is an enlarged end view of two of the slats, illustrating the manner of securing them to the wires. Fig. 13 illustrates a modified form of securing the slats t0 the wires. Figs. 17 and 18 illustrate two different methods of securing the slats together. Fig. 14 illustrates a different manner of connecting the end arms of the seat to the frame, being similar to that shown in Fig. 9. Fig. 15 is an enlarged section taken on line 15 15, Fig. 9. Fig. 16 illustrates a modification of the coupling shown in Fig. 15.

My invention relates to improvements in seats or benches which may be folded up when not in use or for transportation, and which are cheap, durable, and comfortable;

city hereinafter fully described, and pointed a perspective view of my im-,

and my invention consists in features of 'nov-.

the wires being twisted around the slats, as shown in Figs. 1, 2,3, and 12; or instead of being twisted, as shown in these figures, they may besimply crossed, as shown in Fig. 13. The seat proper is thus made flexible, so as to 5 5 permit the seat to be folded into the position shown in Fig. 8.

The wires are made fast at their upper ends to a top rail, E. of the frame. They are preferably secured to the rail by entering sockets, as shown in Fig. 2,.where they are held by a wedge, F; but, instead of being thus held, the sockets may be made entirely through the rail and the wires passed through the sockets and held by a wedge, F, as shown in Figs. 5 and 6; or, instead of being secured by the wedge, the ends of the wires can be bent into a horizontal position and be secured to the rail by means of staples G, as shown in Fig. 4. g

The bottom or front slats of the seat are made fast to horizontal cross-bars H of the frame, asshown at J, Fig. 1. It will be observed from the said figure that the front slats are madefast on the horizontalbars H, fore and aft of the pivotal connection of the bars H with the front legs, 'M. The bars H of the frame are made fast by bolts L to inclined legs M, which are connected near their upper ends by bolts N to vertical legs 0, the lower ends of which are secured to the outer ends of the horizontal bars H. The connection between the bars H and legs 0 is made by means of brackets or plates P, (shown in Fig. 11,) which are secured to the bars H by screws R, and that embrace the legs 0 by means of projections Q, consisting, preferably, of rollers held on pins or bearings S, and they permit the vertical movement of the bars H on thelegs 0. The bars are held down in their using position by means of catches T, secured to the 0 legs 0, as shown in Figs. 1, 7, 9, and 10, and by forcing inward on these catches the bars H and legs 0 may be moved so as to come in line with the bars M, as shown in dotted lines, Fig. 8, and in full lines in Fig. 8, when the seat will assume a compact position, as shown in the latter figure, and into which position it is placed for shipping and when it is not in use.

The weight of the body bearing on the seat will force the rear ends of the horizontal bars mo 11 against the catches T, which will retain the seat in using position. The form of the catches is shown most clearly in Fig. 10.

Asa modification of the legs M, Ihave shown twoiron or wooden rods (lettered U,,Figs. 9, 15, and 16,) connected by couplings U at their respective ends, consisting of iron braekets with sockets, into which the legsfit, and connected at the point of contact with the legs 0 and H by means of brackets V, consisting of rings, as shown in Fig. 15, connected by a web, V, and blocks V, fitting against the web between the rings. Through these blocks and web passes a bolt, W, that connects the couplings to the strips H and legs 0, respectively.

Asa modification, another form of coupling is shown in Fig. 16, which consists of halfrings with a web and block, the half-rings being secured to the rods by means of screws or bolts V.

In Fig. 14 is shown a single rod, U, provided with a clip, U, which is connected to the bars H or legs 0, as the case may be, by a bolt, U. i

Still'another form of connecting the slats C together is shown in Figs. 17 and 18in Fig. 17 the slats being connected by metal strips D, towhich they are secured by screws 1)",

and in Fig. 18 rods or wires are passed through i the slats, connecting them together. These forms of connections differ from those shown in Figs. 12 and 13.

The wires D are preferably pressed or forced into the slats O, as shown most plainly in Figs. 2 and 3, and the cleats are thus held from end movement in the wires. The wires .being let into the tops of the slats, they will oted to the back legs of a chair, which, when the chair is unfolded, are adapted to engage with pins or rods on the front legs, the latter being pivot-ally connected with the back legs; but I am not aware thattit has, before my in vention, been proposed to pivot the scat-frame to the front legs, which latter are pivoted to the back legs, on which are compressible stops with which the seat-frame engages, this con-. struction being such that both a flexible seat.

and back can be used, audwhen the device is folded the flexible seat and back are not folded upon each other.

I claim as my invention- 1. The combination,with a flexible seat and back, of pivoted front and backifolding legs,

a top. bar connecting the front legs, and to t which one end of the flexible seat and back is attached, horizontal bars pivoted: at a point: remote from their ends to the front legs and having the other end of the flexible back i at;-.

tached thereto, catches with which the rear ends of the horizontal bars engage when the seat is unfolded and which allow the rear end: of the said bars to pass when disengaged fronr said catches, whereby they are brought into bars and having projections Q, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

SAMUEL \V. KNOTT; In presence of- L. A. BROWN, Gno. H. KNIGHT, JoE WAHLE. 

